thewiz
has rocks in the head
"What good is money if you don't spend it"
Member since January 2004
Posts: 735
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Post by thewiz on Jan 2, 2010 16:14:32 GMT -5
think of getting three chickens to keep in the yard "for eggs and as pets for my two sons" any one here have pros or cons on doing this.
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snuffy
Cave Dweller
Member since May 2009
Posts: 4,319
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Post by snuffy on Jan 2, 2010 16:52:37 GMT -5
Yep, make sure they are hens. ;D ;D
snuffy
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Post by NatureNut on Jan 2, 2010 17:14:57 GMT -5
Snuffy, LOL.
Hey Wiz, I had a small farm in my old life before I met Billy. The public high school had an agricultural program and my boys brought home some chickens that they hatched in school. They were white chickens and I think we ended up with three hens and a rooster. Although we loved the rooster, he turned mean. Seems to be a known thing about white roosters. Had to have the barn rake with me so he wouldn't come up and "thump" my leg with his spurs. That stinker. Anyway, we really liked them, they free ranged around the farm and headed for the coop which we locked up in a protected area at night. (gotta keep foxes out) Then I got a couple of Araucanas, a Barred Rock and a Rhode Island Red, all hens. The Araucanas lay blue-green eggs and were really sweet and are very prolific. So are the Reds, with brown eggs.
Used to make a braided bread at Easter and Christmas with the eggs and loved the fact that I didn't have to dye them. Also "blew" the eggs each year and made ornaments for an Easter egg tree, which was really a branch.
We dug a trench around the coop, fenced around it with split rail fencing with wire, and cemented the wire into the ground so that foxes could not tunnel under to get 'em. Made it pretty high also.
Well, foxes turned out to be the least of our problems because the neighbor's dog, a yellow lab broke his chain and rampaged through my chickens in several attacks. We replaced them as it went, asked the neighbors to keep their dog under control, tried to keep them in the pasture, but eventually that dog cleaned 'em out.
I found chickens to be funny and sweet, let us pick them up, loved our dog, were generally alot of fun to have. Oh yeah, if they free range, you'll lose your gardens. Chickens scratch the ground for bugs and worms and will scratch your plants out of existence. It was alot of fun to take a shovel, turn over the soil and watch 'em come running to see what's underneath... like little rockhounds, only for bugs. They ate all our leftovers too. Anything, cleaned it all up! Alot of the farm owners believed they kept the tick population down.
You can dissolve some medicine in their water regularly (forget how often), to keep 'em from getting sick, or buy medicated feed. Just keep water available.
The feathers were cool to find, when they dropped off naturally, that is.
Hope this helps. Jo
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Sabre52
Cave Dweller
Me and my gal, Rosie
Member since August 2005
Posts: 20,466
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Post by Sabre52 on Jan 2, 2010 18:04:21 GMT -5
We had pet chickens for years. Really loved them and they are easy to keep. There are disease issues with things like foulpox, mites etc but there are books that tell you how to treat for these things. Mostly, they're easy to care for, feed etc and keep lots of weeds and bugs out of your yard. One warning. Don't sunbathe topless in front of chickens. Ours used to be real nipple pinchers....Mel
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Post by Toad on Jan 2, 2010 18:10:12 GMT -5
I read an article several months back about plastic chicken houses - you might try to look for those on the web.
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agatemaggot
Cave Dweller
Member since August 2006
Posts: 2,195
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Post by agatemaggot on Jan 2, 2010 18:21:14 GMT -5
If ya got a Rooster around you wont have to worry about over sleeping and gettin to work late !
Or getting up early to go houndin on Saturday and Sunday !
Harley
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Post by sandsman1 on Jan 2, 2010 19:26:24 GMT -5
when you get tired of steppin in chickin poop you can always eat them i hear they taste like chickin haha
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thewiz
has rocks in the head
"What good is money if you don't spend it"
Member since January 2004
Posts: 735
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Post by thewiz on Jan 2, 2010 20:23:50 GMT -5
it is the barred rock chicken that we like the most. i have seen the plastic chicken houses but they are around 500 bucks. and yes i figure that if we don't like having them in the yard with the pool and all my wife's plants i will have my worker from Albania gut and de feather them for cooking
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Post by morerockspleaz on Jan 2, 2010 21:00:15 GMT -5
I have chickens and I love them but they have there own house and yard. ;D I do let them out daily for a few hours and I have no flower beds left unscratched. They love to poop on the porch and eat the dogs food. They are a great undertaking to say the least. And by the way chickens cannot swim. Ask me how I know?
morerockspleaz
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thewiz
has rocks in the head
"What good is money if you don't spend it"
Member since January 2004
Posts: 735
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Post by thewiz on Jan 2, 2010 21:11:25 GMT -5
why do you call them a great undertaking. our back yard is 70 x 85 feet and they will only be out when the kids are watching them
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Post by morerockspleaz on Jan 2, 2010 21:27:30 GMT -5
Well first you have to raise them from babies, kept in a brooder til they are feathered out. Wow can they make a stinky mess. Build a pen, covered and fenced, chicken wire will not keep preditors out, bury your wire underground for the digging preditors build a house, build a roost, build nest boxes and wait 4-6 months for your first egg. Granted I did 38 at one time but still I would do it all over again. I sent you a pm
morerockspleaz
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earthdog
Cave Dweller
Don't eat yellow snow
Member since June 2006
Posts: 2,731
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Post by earthdog on Jan 2, 2010 21:50:36 GMT -5
I hope I'm not starting anything here, but isn't this guy, "thewhiz" the same one that caused all the problems around here before, the one that asked if everyone wanted him gone, he would leave, the one that would post a bunch of crap then delete his posts?
Just wanna make sure I'm thinking about the same guy, or maybe i'm wrong...
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Post by deb193redux on Jan 2, 2010 21:51:38 GMT -5
I think that was "Wizzard", different guy.
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geodes4u
starting to spend too much on rocks
Member since October 2009
Posts: 144
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Post by geodes4u on Jan 2, 2010 21:53:12 GMT -5
The Barred Rock breed are very friendly; I had one that would ride on my shoulder while collecting eggs. The Rocks will lay brown eggs. Make sure that is what you want. If you want (white) easter eggs to color, then pick up a few leghorns. I keep mine in pens with wire on the top also, so they can't be plucked by hawks. Timothy
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thewiz
has rocks in the head
"What good is money if you don't spend it"
Member since January 2004
Posts: 735
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Post by thewiz on Jan 2, 2010 22:38:42 GMT -5
edog i'm the one with the jap bike how could you forget me. and check my join date i have been here a long time. don't post much but do check in two or three times a day. got my leds for the bike from the place you told me about and i love them thanks
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thewiz
has rocks in the head
"What good is money if you don't spend it"
Member since January 2004
Posts: 735
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Post by thewiz on Jan 2, 2010 23:42:07 GMT -5
we already have two fish tanks "28 and 45 gallon" a jenday conure "bird" a frog and a 64 gallon pond next to the pool with fish in it "i liked the pond that edog posted pics of "i believe it was his pond" after the kids saw that i had to put one in. so i didn't think chickens would be to bad and also the wife is on board. and after reading the replys it seems all who had chickens like them and it is only going to be three of them
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rockhound97058
freely admits to licking rocks
Thundereggs - Oregons Official State Rock!
Member since January 2006
Posts: 760
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Post by rockhound97058 on Jan 3, 2010 0:33:07 GMT -5
I live in town and my neighbor has a few chickens. They do make funny pets and lay eggs, but to be honest when they get out and come in my yard they make a mess all over my dang rock piles and my yard when walking through. As long as you keep em in a cage they should be allright. The fellow next door often times uses a "tie out" to keep em from running off. The only bad thing about this is the local hawk loves to try for a free meal.
I had fun throwing snowballs at his the other day in my yard... (No animals were harmed in the making of this post) ;D
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Post by texaswoodie on Jan 3, 2010 8:18:50 GMT -5
You might want to look into Bantams. They will pretty much take care of themselves. They will nest and hatch their own eggs. The larger breeds for the most part won't. Smaller eggs, but much less trouble than the larger breeds.
I put a couple of newly hatched turkeys under a nesting banty hen one time. In two weeks the turkeys were larger than the hen. In a month the turkeys looked like giants following a pigmy. If you grabbed one of the turkys, that little hen would jump right in the middle of you. You just don't mess with a banty's babies. ;D
Curt
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earthdog
Cave Dweller
Don't eat yellow snow
Member since June 2006
Posts: 2,731
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Post by earthdog on Jan 3, 2010 13:16:05 GMT -5
Ok, how could i forget the "rice burner" bike. I was just wondering... Thanks for clearing that up for me. Are you still riding now? Mine is in the hog barn under covers with the battery in the basement and she is sleeping well for the winter.. Every time I'm home I want to go out and stroke her chrome.
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Fossilman
Cave Dweller
Member since January 2009
Posts: 20,687
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Post by Fossilman on Jan 3, 2010 13:16:29 GMT -5
I like having chickens and other barn animals around too...............I like roosters and pigs.................Chickens are easy to raise,just keep the coyotes away and racoons!
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